Justice

Fairness in organizations is more than just fair pay - it shapes job satisfaction, #trust and cooperation. In addition to salaries, transparent processes and respectful leadership count. Particularly important: how decisions are communicated often has a greater impact on the perception of fairness than the decision itself. A fair corporate culture is created through clear structures and a culture of personal responsibility. A truly fair working environment can only be created if the organization and employees work together

Justice - a big word that is deeply rooted in us. Even children react sensitively when they feel they are being treated unfairly. “Why does my brother get a bigger piece of cake?” These early experiences shape our sense of fairness and often accompany us into our professional lives. But what exactly does fairness mean in companies, and why is it so crucial for employee satisfaction and cooperation?

Different perspectives on justice

Let's take the example of that cake in the office. Philosophers ask: What is fair? They discuss according to which principle the cake should be divided - according to hunger, age or equally for all? Lawyers deal with laws and regulations. They look to see whether there is a company policy on cake distribution. Psychologists, on the other hand, are interested in subjective perception - for example, why some people feel disadvantaged, which of the above principles are seen as fair. Because what seems fair to one person is perceived as unfair by another. This subjective view plays a particularly important role in the work context.

Justice in organizations as a marathon

We can imagine an organization as running a marathon. The employees are the runners who push themselves to reach the finish line - in other words, to generate sales or successfully complete projects. But what ensures that everyone feels treated fairly? Decades of psychological research into fairness in organizations has revealed three aspects:

1. Distributive Justice

Do all runners have the same equipment and fair starting conditions? This corresponds to the fair distribution of salaries, bonuses and resources within the company.

2. Procedural Justice

Are the rules of the competition the same for everyone? In the organization, this means transparent, uniform and comprehensible decision-making processes.

3. Interaktionale Gerechtigkeit oder «interactional justice»

How does the coach or manager behave towards the runners? Are they treated with respect, motivated and valued? This dimension is crucial for employees' #trust in their superiors.

If a runner is favored or the rules seem unfair, this leads to frustration, unrest and, in the worst case, to dropping out of the race - or in the corporate context: to resigning or changing jobs.

Why “interactional” justice is particularly important

While fair salaries and transparent processes are important, in practice it is often the way in which decisions are communicated that makes the biggest difference. One and the same decision can be perceived as either fair or hurtful - depending on how it is communicated.

However, not every employee reacts in the same way to potential injustice. Some quickly feel offended, others take the same situation in their stride. This depends on personal experience, expectations and the degree of #self-responsibility. Those who expect constant recognition from their manager feel disadvantaged more quickly than those who derive more satisfaction from themselves.

Organizational Justice - a question of perspective, clarity and attitude

There is no such thing as one fairness in organizations. Rather, there are different dimensions and principles, and everyone perceives fairness differently. For a fair corporate culture, this means that it is not created solely through fair salaries or transparent processes - but above all through appreciative, respectful communication.

Fairness is not a one-way street. It thrives on both the obligations of the organization and the personal development of employees. Companies can do a lot to create a fair working environment through clear rules, transparent decision-making processes and fair leadership.

But employees themselves should also contribute: those who only demand fairness from the outside instead of also working on their own resilience and #self-responsibility remain trapped in a passive attitude. A healthy corporate culture therefore not only promotes fairness in structures and leadership, but also supports the personal development of each individual - towards more personal responsibility and a mature view of fairness. Ultimately, a fair working environment is created through the interplay of organizational clarity regarding decisions and individual attitudes.

Self-responsibility

«Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.» (Viktor Frankl)

Our stimuli are like waves in the ocean - they come unstoppably, sometimes gently, sometimes stormily. #SelfResponsibility means not simply suffering these waves or fighting against them. Rather, it means reading them, feeling them and surfing them. If you know your impulses, you can decide when it's time to go with them, when to wait and when it's better to avoid them. Self-responsibility is the art of consciously perceiving and understanding your own impulses and dealing with them appropriately. This means neither acting out impulses reflexively nor suppressing them.

Corona has led to a wave of technological and social development. Changes have rarely happened so quickly in human history. And, according to various futurologists, this was just the beginning. Even today, many people feel alienated by economic pressure, AI disruption and political polarization. This is why it is so important to learn to understand our own reactions to unavoidable stimuli.

The dynamics between stimulus and response

We often tend to quickly switch off the stimulus on the outside instead of starting with our reaction on the inside; for example, when I'm standing on the edge of the playground as a father. I can shout angrily at the strange child who pushes my child off the swing and the passive “laissez-faire” parents at the same time. The trigger point had me and I may have said things that I later regret.

In life, we are often faced with the decision: should I act on the outside or regulate my inner reaction? An example: After a presentation, the boss gives unjustifiably critical feedback. There are now two possible reactions:

Those who act quickly should sometimes pause. If someone tends to react immediately with offense, a better strategy might be to take a deep breath, reflect on the feedback and respond calmly later.

Those who withdraw should sometimes become active. If someone tends to accept criticism in silence, it would be more helpful to make it clear directly and objectively that there has been a misunderstanding.

There is no universal right or wrong - depending on the situation, one or the other strategy may be better. It is important to recognize your own tendencies and create space to make conscious decisions in the dynamic.

Who "makes" my feelings?

"Because you..., I am..." is a phrase often said in relationships, families and organizations. Many people act as if there is a crystal-clear connection. They go through the world assuming that others make them feel bad. This is not surprising. After all, many people learned this supposed connection at an early age, for example through parental messages: "Because you don't clean your room, you make daddy sad."

In fact, no one can make the other person feel. Once I have developed a certain amount of self-responsibility, I realize that I “make” these feelings myself. It is my own doing to feel the way I feel. This personal effort is reflected in automatic, unconscious, quick patterns.

These patterns can be understood as a “compulsion to react without room for maneuver”. They reduce the space between stimulus and reaction mentioned by Viktor Frankl in the opening quote. This is why it is so important to work on these patterns. And this is both a curse and a blessing: only I am responsible for this and only I can reduce the compulsion to react. It also becomes clear that the less self-responsibility I cultivate on the inside, the more conflicts I have on the outside.

Build self-responsibility, break patterns

In coaching, it is helpful to deal with two parts in order to build self-responsibility. Effective approaches such as the #metatheoryofchange and #hypnosystemic coaching focus on working with, among other things:

1. The “victim ego” part

2. The “perpetrator ego” part

It is important to consider both parts in the coaching work. The previous example illustrates this. I am affected by my boss's feedback and have a corresponding “perpetrator voice” inside me. This perpetrator aggressively belittles me, like this: “How can you be so stupid as to give such a flat presentation?” I should get in touch with this voice if I want to break my pattern and strengthen my self-responsibility. This requires steadfast support and a broad repertoire of methods, such as working with representations, frames of reference and self-awareness.

In addition to dealing with people and situations, personal responsibility is also key when making important life decisions. For example, is it a question of “stay or go”, e.g. resigning or becoming self-employed: yes or no? In many coaching and consulting approaches, a pro/con list of the respective advantages is drawn up. This can be a useful starting point, but ultimately remains superficial.

When it comes to important decisions, it is essential to deal with underlying fears: for example, it can be a matter of exploring the fear of risk and the fear of freezing together and in an emotionally relevant way. This can lead to a sustainable, conscious decision.

The path to inner freedom

We need something like “impulse intelligence” in order to learn to ride the waves of impulses smoothly. In order to develop this impulse intelligence, a sociable and trusting dialog with a coach is essential. In the shared dialog space, it is important to uncover what was previously not allowed to be. When we go into this depth together, with a clear attitude, it becomes clear that the path to inner freedom goes through the unpleasant feelings.

Mindfulness

Mindfulness techniques are in vogue, both privately and in the corporate context. And yet exhaustion at work is on the rise and burnout rates are increasing. What if the midday meditation is only there to make the afternoon meetings more productive? And, spinning this further, what constitutes genuine regenerative workspaces in the organization of the future?

Meditation as a tool

At the end of my psychology studies, a meditation center was opened in my backyard in Munich-Schwabing. I had been intending to meditate for some time at this point. So I saw the opening a good 15 years ago as something of a sign.

Meditation and mindfulness quickly became an integral part of my daily routine. Initially, I wanted to work towards a spiritual goal in my top-heavy everyday life as a student. But above all, to be honest, I wanted to gain clarity of mind. In other words, I wanted to keep an overview when all my thoughts came at once again; when it became unclear what was important, what I should actually start with: text messages to be answered, things to do, deadlines and bills to be paid. All these “to dos” could sometimes take the form of a tidal wave that swept me away.

Meditation soon became a “tool” that I used to start the day in an organized way and to tame my flood of thoughts. In the beginning, it was accompanied by mantras in foreign languages, produced by my vibrating head voice. At the meditation center, I practiced weekly in a group setting, which then accompanied me throughout the week in the quiet.

Meditation for self-optimization

I strictly adhered to the routine of daily repetition. Meditation came into my life like brushing my teeth, “disciplined” so to speak: you do it every day, for a specific purpose. For example, to survive the tidal wave and not be swept away by it.

Then came the doctorate in Zurich at the ETH. When I moved to Switzerland in 2010, I took furniture and the routine of meditating with me. With the demands of funding acquisition, research, text production, publication, editorship, thesis supervision and lectures, there was enough potential for a flood of thoughts.

Meditation gradually became my tool for self-optimization. Sometimes brilliant ideas came to me while sitting in the lotus position, which I did more badly than well. Then I would limp and stumble from my pillow to my desk with my foot asleep to hastily jot down the ideas. So now it was more and more about using meditation for productivity.

In “4000 Weeks”, Oliver Burkeman vividly describes how quickly these self-optimization strategies and time management take on a life of their own and expand into a sprawling bottomless pit. And that's what happened to me too: what began with work issues later shifted into my private life.

Optimization became an end in itself. In other words, I shielded myself from social situations, for example, so as not to miss out on moments that would generate ideas; I put myself and others under time pressure where none was necessary. This end in itself fell on fertile ground. My driver “be perfect” was the earth. This earth gratefully accepted the seeds of self-optimization. And something grew up that took me far away from my inner core.

Mindfulness as an accomplice to burnout

A key turning point in my understanding of mindfulness was the difference between self-worth and self-compassion. The focus on self-worth is often outward - achieving goals, receiving validation from others. Self-compassion, on the other hand, is internal. It means accepting yourself as you are right now: without the constant pressure of having to prove yourself. It's a more sustainable form of self-care that doesn't rely on external success. I realized after a while that meditation and mindfulness could help me to look at myself with self-compassion instead of constantly measuring myself against the standards of self-optimization.

And at the same time, I realized that meditation can become an accomplice to burnout when stress increases in your personal and work life. I heard an apt metaphor in a podcast: meditation can be like a prison if it only serves to cover up exhaustion instead of really changing something fundamental.

I, too, often used meditation to feel better in the short term without addressing the underlying causes of my overload. This is understandable in stressful phases of life: the human psyche then switches into a kind of autopilot. Mindfulness can then be functional for the moment and the context. In other words, it helped me to continue working productively in the system. But I didn't change anything about the system itself, for example the way I worked and relaxed, talked to myself and others, or the boundaries I set.

The key for me was to question my inner attitude towards meditation. Why do I meditate? To function, to cope with everyday life? Or do I meditate because it meets a need within me? It is important to consider: can I satisfy my need or is it insatiable? If the latter is the case, it can be assumed in terms of need regulation that meditation is merely a substitute need. In other words, that I use meditation to cover up or avoid something else: for example, my fear of inefficiency or loss of control.

Mindfulness and exhaustion in organizations

The question now arises as to how mindfulness can work in organizations. Self-esteem-enhancing, imposed, goal-oriented mindfulness will hardly be helpful in the long term. It will only further accelerate self-optimization. As already mentioned, the attitude of employees and also the “framing” in companies is crucial: when it comes to the instrumentalization of meditation to increase creativity and performance, employees quickly sense this. If meditation is used to boost self-esteem, efficiency and self-realization, it becomes problematic.

In “The weariness of the Self”, Alain Ehrenberg describes how modern society is increasingly characterized by the pressure of self-fulfilment. The constant demand for individual performance leads to chronic exhaustion because people are forced to constantly optimize themselves. This is also transferred to organizations, where the boundary between professional and personal performance can become blurred.

In other words, if the inner dialog leads to the conviction that “I am only a valuable person if I am constantly performing at my best”, then something is wrong. If the corporate culture of this performance requirement on the outside corresponds to drivers such as “be perfect” or “please others” on the inside, there is a risk of exhaustion.

Individual self-responsibility in organizations

In addition to the responsibility of organizations, employees are also responsible for reflecting on their attitude. To this end, it is important to make them aware of their personal responsibility. This means that an individual takes responsibility for their own decisions, emotions and actions instead of looking externally for the causes of difficulties and blockages.

If a person is not responsible for themselves, they may try to influence other people or external circumstances in order to protect themselves from unpleasant feelings: For example, as a manager, they may only hire employees who cannot be dangerous to them, for example because they do not express their own opinions.

However, in order to create a team that deals constructively with contradictions and controversies, it is important to question your own inner attitude, behavior or perspectives. The attitude that one's own well-being or goals must be actively managed by manipulating external circumstances runs counter to this. Unintentional meditation focused on mindfulness can help to change your own attitude. This is because it starts at the point where something is perceived as unpleasant. In other words, at the root.

Mindfulness and conflict management for regenerative workspaces

Organizations are already facing a high level of complexity and contradictions. The seemingly irreconcilable must be reconciled. On the one hand, they are competitive, efficiency-driven spaces; economic viability is and remains a fundamental part of their identity. On the other hand, however, employees and customers demand more “purpose”: in other words, overarching meaning and purpose, i.e. aspects that go far beyond turnover and profit. Conflicts are inevitable.

In “The Art of Conflict”, Klaus Eidenschink clearly shows that conflicts are unavoidable and can be used as a resource. This is because conflicts often reflect the underlying systemic problems of an organization. They show where, for example, communication channels or values are not in harmony. Morton Deutsch also highlighted the potential of conflicts with his theory of “constructive controversy”. According to this theory, they promote critical thinking and creativity and can facilitate innovation and change.

Organizations should therefore create spaces in which conflicts are not only permitted, but actively and productively used. Managers play a decisive role here. They should ensure that conflicts are dealt with openly and respectfully and thus contribute to a constructive conflict culture.

Organizations can also establish structures that offer space for relaxation, reflection and mutual feedback - away from the pressure to perform and constant self-improvement. This could be achieved through flexible recovery times or the active promotion of non-work-related interests. In addition to the sports group, the mindfulness group is also worth promoting. It is important not to link any goals to mindfulness.

The link to Ehrenberg's theses makes it clear that employees need more than just short-term measures to increase their productivity. They need regenerative spaces that allow them to focus not only on external demands, but also on their own underlying needs. Ultimately, this can create workspaces that not only do no harm, but also offer resources. This is how “mindlessness” can become “mindful” again.

---This blog post also appeared in German on futureready.ch---